I've had a lot of fun playing with my Post Card quilt scraps this week. I've been cutting and stitching different hexagon shapes, inspired by Barb Vedder's Hex Vex quilt pattern.
I think this will be my go-to travel project for the next several months, so I'm trying to get plenty of blocks prepped. Barb's Hex Vex pattern/kit included a number of pre-cut shapes from Paper Pieces. The pre-cut shapes require basting stitches to hold the fabric in place for stitching. I've been experimenting with that EPP technique, as well as a few others.
Another EPP technique is using freezer paper shapes and fabric glue instead of basting stitches. These diamonds were cut using freezer paper. Fabric glue will hold the seam allowances in place while the diamonds are stitched together.
I haven't decided if I like one technique better than the other. I think it's always useful to have a repertoire of stitching techniques, so you can use the one that works best in a given situation.
I went ahead and cut some large, un-pieced hexagons while I still had large chunks of fabric available. Fussy cutting all those different diamonds makes holey fabric pretty quickly. Not to mention, fat quarters are not very useful for fussy cutting - at least not at this size (the hexagon sides are 3 inches). I quickly found I needed a trip to the "modern" LQS in town (Mes Amis Quilt Shop) for more fabric!
And wouldn't you know I found a few new fabrics - completely unrelated to flamingos - that I NEEDED? These two Robert Kaufman prints were too cute to pass up!
Or how about this retro-style cocktail recipe fabric?
And a new text fabric - this might even become the backing for my flamingo Hex Vex!
A few weeks ago, I mentioned my Dear Husband was cooking Jamie Oliver's Chicken in Milk for dinner. I don't have a picture of our finished chicken, but you can check out the one in the link. The resulting chicken was delicious - and even better the next day in sandwiches. We liked it so much we're having it again this evening - and serving it to guests!
If you're looking for more scrappy inspiration, check out the links at the Rainbow Scrap Challenge!
